David Diao uses Barnett Newman as a sounding board to explore his own fascination with the artist and the contradictory legacies of modernism.
John Yau
John Yau has published books of poetry, fiction, and criticism. His latest poetry publications include a book of poems, Further Adventures in Monochrome (Copper Canyon Press, 2012), and the chapbook, Egyptian Sonnets (Rain Taxi, 2012). His most recent monographs are Catherine Murphy (Rizzoli, 2016), the first book on the artist, and Richard Artschwager: Into the Desert (Black Dog Publishing, 2015). He has also written monographs on A. R. Penck, Jasper Johns, and Andy Warhol. In 1999, he started Black Square Editions, a small press devoted to poetry, fiction, translation, and criticism. He was the Arts Editor for the Brooklyn Rail (2007–2011) before he began writing regularly for Hyperallergic. He is a Professor of Critical Studies at Mason Gross School of the Arts (Rutgers University).
Posted inArt
In His Final Works, Brice Marden Found Freedom
The artist, who passed away this year, finally let go of his desire for control and perfection without surrendering his self-imposed restraints.
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Steve DiBenedetto’s Art Embraces Incoherence
I can think of few other artists who, through the process of painting, are willing to place their work in jeopardy by denying the viewer a definition or resolution.
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John Rogers Cox’s Somber Clouds
As beautifully controlled as his paintings are, they also present a ghastly vision of the world.
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What to Do With Our Anger?
In painting, Gandy Brodie could find moments of beauty and defenselessness, as well as the endurance and will to survive, despite a difficult life.
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Sean Scully Goes Down a Rabbit Hole
By introducing his motifs into a children’s story, and avoiding any sense of self-importance, Scully reveals another side of himself.
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The Filipino-American Friends Who Forged New Artistic Paths
Once Carlos Villa and Leo Valledor recognized that they could never fully assimilate into mainstream America, they set out on their own paths.
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An Italian Artist Who Took On American Capitalism
Mario Schifano moved nimbly among different modes and never settled into a style, which sets him apart from many of his contemporaries.
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Jim Nutt’s Art Deserves a Closer Look
By choosing the unforgiving surface of toothed paper and making irrevocable marks, Nutt enters a territory few American artists have dared to go.
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The Infinite, Never-Released Scream
Asako Tabata presents a stark, unsettling vision of a society in which women have little chance to achieve autonomy.
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What Did the Lion Tell the Tiger?
While Wu Junyong is deeply connected to his love of Chinese myths, folktales, and language, his subjects underscore his break with the past.
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How Blaise Cendrars Blazed a Trail Into Modernity
He integrated the language of advertising and journalism into his poetry, and was influenced by the rapid tempo of jazz.
